Friday, September 11, 2009

Crafty Books

John Gardner. There, now that his name has been mentioned I guess The Storyteller's Inkpot qualifies as a forum for the discussion of writing. Today I was rereading some chapters in his The Art of Fiction as I prepared a presentation, and I was reminded that I don't exactly love the book. One's affection for these sorts of books ebbs and flows, I suspect. I'm curious as to what "how-to" books on craft my colleagues here are currently recommending to students. Anything newer than Janet Burroway, Robert Olen Butler or Gardner?

1 comment:

The best craft book for todays writer, in my opinion, is James Wood's "What Fiction Means." Free Indirect has changed the way I write. It is also fun to say, "I read that," when he quotes a book positively.